A division of Circle Strings in Burlington, Vermont, Iris Guitar Company is a small team of highly-skilled and seasoned luthiers who are dedicated to building modern instruments that capture vintage-inspired tone and aesthetics. Iris guitars are handmade using a combination of state of the art techniques and old-world craftsmanship.
The OG Model is where it all began! It's a smallish body with slope shoulders and a relatively wide waist. It has a comfortable 25” scale and an equally comfy C-shape neck. According to the 2019 review in Acoustic Guitar Magazine: ”Overall, it has a warm and dry voice, with an impressive midrange response. It takes equally well to being strummed with a pick or fingerpicked, in standard or open tunings, and it has a generous amount of headroom and projection.”
This Iris OG (#846) is gently used from 2023. It features a 12-fret neck and a natural top finish with "Dark Stain" back and sides. The Tortoise Binding blends right in with the dark sides, which are beautiful match for the more caramel-color NOS Guild Top. To our ear, NOS (New Old Stock) Guild top makes the guitar sound older and broken-in right out of the box. The effect is similar to what you get from a torrefied top, but since these tops are naturally aged, there's a certain "older guitar" sweetness and subtlety that feels and sounds authentic.
This 2023 OG 12-fret shows minor signs of play wear on the back of the neck and along the bass edge of the top. There is also wear to the sides of the headstock from a string winder (see photos). The setup is excellent, and the frets are pristine. It includes its original hardshell case.
This OG 12-fret produces a warm sound with resonance and vibe like an old guitar, but obviously it's a pristine, perfect brand-new guitar. It has a 1-3/4" nut width, and it has factory-installed Ebony bridge pins instead of the standard plastic. It plays nicely up and down the fingerboard. The 12-fret design helps it produce more bass than you might expect, the mid-range is powerful and crisp, and the treble cuts.
Dimensions:
- Depth: 4-5/8”
- Body Length: 19-3/8”
- Total Length: 38-3/4"
- Upper bout: 11-3/8”
- Lower bout: 14-1/2”
- Waist: 10"
Specs:
- Top: NOS Guild Sitka Spruce
- Back & Sides: Mahogany
- Braces: Scalloped Adirondack Spruce
- Bracing Pattern: X-Brace w/ 2 Tone Bars
- Neck Joint: Bolt on Mortise & Tenon
- Nut: Bone, 1-3/4" Spacing
- Saddle: Bone, 2-3/8" Spacing
- Scale Length: 25"
- Fingerboard & bridge: Indian Rosewood
- Top Binding: Tortoise w/ Black/White/Black purfling
- Back Binding: Tortoise
- Pickguard: Tortoise
- Finish: Open Pore, Natural Satin Nitrocellulose Finish
- Tuning Machines: Golden Age Relic Brass w/ off-white buttons
- Case: Hardshell by TKL